Confusion, Frustration & Love
by JenCakeLover
Summary: It's almost New Years, and Gajeel has been feeling these different and confusing emotions whenever he's around Levy: Fairy Tail's bookworm. With help from Lucy, what might Gajeel accomplish?


**Honestly, I couldn't help myself. cx after I lost inspiration and stuff for "It's Life, Right?" I thought that I wouldn't update ever again, but the moment you guys favorited, reviewed, and followed my story, I was like, "ah~ I'm so happy!" cx so I made my FIRST (so if it's bad, bear with me) one-shot EVER! Yeeeaahh ^^ **

**My best friend, **_**FTskyDragonslayer**_** helped me make this! We traded ideas for a one-shot based on GaLe. I wrote about her idea, and she wrote about mine! ^^ She's a great writer by the way, and her ideas are amaaazzinggg :O Check her on Wattpad, and XD **

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy this c:**

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><p>Gajeel Redfox stood at the far corner of the guild, over-looking all of his team-mates and friends. Everyone in Fairy Tail was talking about the upcoming New Year, which was only days away, although he didn't really care. Every single time, Gajeel's eyes wandered towards Levy, or "Shrimp", which is his nickname for her. She was cutely reading her book, her eyes widening in excitement when something good happened, and her tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth when something bad happened. Gajeel found that incredibly cute, but of course, he would never admit it out loud. He was Fairy Tail's cold and harsh man. Not some cheesy poet!<p>

_Dammit,_ Gajeel thought to himself, internally groaning. _What's up with these stupid girly thoughts in my head that keep popping up all the time?! This has never happened before! Why is it happening now?! Am I getting old? Does this happen to every guy who gets old?_ Gajeel punched the nearest table in which Lily was sitting on.

"Woah! What happened?!" he asked, startled.

Gajeel frowned, and scratched his head. "Tch. Nothing. I just need to talk to someone. I'll be back."

Hastily, Gajeel stood up and headed towards the bar and sat down on one of the stools right beside Fairy Tail's beloved blonde celestial mage, Lucy Heartfilia (or "Bunny Girl"). She was peacefully talking with Mira and Wendy about what food she should bring for the big event. Noticing Gajeel's presence, Lucy turned towards the Iron Dragon Slayer and shot him a smile. "Oh, hey Gajeel! It's rare to see you here. I thought you loved to spend your time in that corner or something."

Holding back a rude outburst, Gajeel went straight to business. "Yo Bunny Girl, I need your..."

Gajeel choked on his words. Asking for someone's help is tough for a guy who always wants to act tough!

Lucy tilted her head to the side in confusion. "My...?"

Just when Gajeel was going to burst his calling for help, Natsu (Fairy Tail's most idiotic mage), flew in from his recent battle with Gray.

"Ack!" He shouted, crashing right in between Lucy and Gajeel. "I'll get you back, Ice Princess!" he screamed demonically, earning a cocky smirk from the said man. Turning his head to the two people by him, he gave them a lopsided smile.

"Hey Luce!" he said energetically. "Is Metal Freak bothering you? If he is, I can bash his eyes out for you! I'm all fired up!" Natsu cracked his knuckles and proceeded to charge at Gajeel.

"No, Natsu!" Lucy stopped the Fire Dragon Slayer before he could hit Gajeel. "Gajeel needed something, but you rudely interrupted him!" she sternly pointed a finger at Natsu's face, scolding him like a mother would.

Pleased with how she handled everything, she smoothly sat back down and faced Gajeel once again. "Now what was it, Gajeel?" she asked politely.

"Oh. Uh, yeah." Gajeel scratched his head for the second time that day and took a deep breath.

"I need your help."

"Pff... HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Natsu broke into laughter, tears streaming down his eyes. "METAL FREAK NEEDS HELP FROM A GIRL!" He teased endlessly, causing the whole guild to erupt into laughter and gasps.

"Shut up, will you?!" Gajeel told Natsu angrily. "Tch. You know what? Never mind!" Gajeel stomped out of the guild, slamming the door closed.

"Natsu!" Lucy scolded angrily. "Now I won't know what he needed help with!"

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><p>Gajeel continued to stomp his way through Magnolia, grumbling vulgar words. He was too busy to notice Lily try to catch up with his fast pace, his wings spread out, holding a half-eaten kiwi in his small hands.<p>

"Gajeel!" he called, finally catching up to the dragon slayer. Panting, he asked, "What was that back there?"

Gajeel grumbled and shifted his eyes to the tall buildings of the city. There were pretty decorations everywhere, celebrating the coming of the New Year. People were out having fun, keeping track of 'the last thing they're going to do for this year'.

"Nothin'," he simply said.

Lily stared at Gajeel, clearly unsatisfied with his answer.

"It didn't seem like it was nothing. Why did you need Lucy's help?"

Gajeel threw his head up, annoyed and angry. "I don't wanna talk 'bout it, okay?!" he shouted defiantly at the Exceed. After a few moments of silence that Gajeel was very pleased about, he walked all the way to his house with Lily trailing after him, continuing to eat his kiwi.

Walking in the guild once again the day after, he saw the guild finally getting out the decorations. They were now hanging it on every spot of the hall. Everyone was jolly and happy, but Gajeel was still a bit grouchy about the events that happened yesterday. The next time he saw Salamander, he will definitely give him a lesson!

It wasn't that hard to spot Natsu. His bright, pink and girly hair stood out the most. Gajeel sped up his face and was about to shout, "Hey Salamander!" but Lucy stepped in and approached him first.

"Hey Gajeel!" she said with a cheery smile. "About yesterday, Natsu was being an idiot, making fun of you like that. Now, what did you need help with?"

Gulping again, afraid to embarrass himself for the second time, Gajeel mustered up his courage and spoke seriously, "I'd rather not talk about it here, Bunny Girl. The other Dragon Slayers might over-hear. Meet me outside the guild at 11. Got it?"

Looking at Lucy's change in mood, Gajeel saw her slight confusion.

"Look," Gajeel said, trying to clear up any misunderstandings. "It's just that I don't want to be humiliated by anyone again; especially Salamander. You got that, Bunny Girl?"

Sensing Lucy's understanding, he walked over to Levy, who was quietly reading a different novel from yesterday (she probably finished it already), sitting with Jet and Droy who were drooling all over her.

"Wow, Levy! You're such a fast reader!" Droy exclaimed while eating a large chicken leg.

"Yeah, Levy! You're so fast, that you might be faster than me!" Jet added, his eyes widening in fascination. Of course, Levy wasn't bothered by this at all. It happened all the time and she just got used to it.

Even though it didn't bother Levy, Gajeel wasn't pleased at all. He didn't know why, of course, but the moment he reached Levy's table, he glared daggers at Jet and Droy who then shivered and scurried off to another part of the guild.

"Hey Shrimp," Gajeel greeted; satisfied that Levy's two fan-boys were out of the way.

"Stop calling me that, Gajeel!" Levy groaned in frustration; she did that every countless time he called her that. Gajeel didn't know why he still calls her that. He knew that Levy got the message saying that she was short, so shouldn't he stop? Or maybe her reaction every single time never got old for Gajeel.

_There's that stupid girly thought again,_ Gajeel cursed.

After Levy's usual reaction, she smiled sweetly. "Hi."

That one word brought up Gajeel's heartbeat, and he found himself sweating. "W-what's..." he inwardly groaned at his stutter. "What's that you got there, Shrimp?"

Clearly ticked off from that nickname, Levy answered, "This..." She stopped to bookmark her page and shove the cover in Gajeel's face. "...Is Lucy & I's favorite romance novel!"

Gajeel leaned back from the close distance between his face and the book, and took some time examining the front cover. The dragon slayer didn't even bother to read the title. Instead, his eyes were glued to the picture below the title which displayed a girl; who looked like she was 16; and a boy; who looked like he was just a year older than her.

The two characters were facing each other, but a large road with busy cars was in between them. One of their arms was stretched out in front of them, as if trying to reach each other. _Tch, they'll never reach each other by just putting their arms out,_ Gajeel thought, holding in his laugh of how stupid he thought the two characters were.

That thought soon faded when he pictured his face on the boy's body, and Levy's face on the girl's body. The idea of that situation happening to him and Levy was sadly depressing to him. Gajeel always wants Levy to be by his side. He likes to be that one and only guy to protect her from harm.

Letting his thoughts wander, he snapped back to reality when Levy started to lean towards him, waving her hand back and forth in front of his face. Noticing the small distance in between him and Levy, he leaned back once again. "O-oi! Shrimp, what the hell?!"

Laughing at his hilarious reaction, Levy sat back down and opened her book to continue reading. Levy sighed pleasantly and closed her book yet again, deciding to save the reading for later. "You should've seen your face!" she teased, definitely enjoying this moment. Now she could get Gajeel back for the countless times he teased her!

Gajeel rolled his eyes, turning his head to observe the other things that were going on in the guild to hide his flaming face from Levy. Seeing Natsu ripping Gray's underwear off, he quickly turned his head back to Levy, trying to shake off the horrendous sight. "Yeah, whatever," he said, shaking it off casually. "Shrimp." He added. Sensing Levy's anger once more, he cackled, "Gi-hi."

For the rest of the day, the two Fairy Tail mages laid back and talked about the New Year while teasing each other endlessly.

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><p>Gajeel leaned against the wall, waiting for Lucy to arrive so he could finally ask for her assistance. In his mind, he was planning what to say so he would sound less of an idiot. "I need some help. Help... Ugh," He mumbled to himself.<p>

"Gajeel!" Lucy called, running towards him.

"You're late, Bunny Girl," he stated, shooting her a serious look.

"I'm sorry!" She wailed. "Natsu barged into my house, and he ate all my food, so I had to go to the market, but then when we came home he ate everything again and..."

Not bothering to listen to Lucy's explanation, he cut her off.

"Bunny Girl, I need your help."

Lucy paused, remembering what she was here for. "Oh, yeah, okay. What do you need help with?" she asked, trying to hide her excitement.

"I... Uh... I feel weird." Gajeel said awkwardly, scratching his head.

Lucy stared at him blankly. "You... Feel weird?" she giggled. "Well, are you sick? You should go to Wendy or Mira about this! Not me!" she suggested, positioning her hands as an 'x'.

Noticing that she was about to walk away, Gajeel spoke, "Wait, I feel weird around Shrimp."

"Wait, what?" Lucy asked. "You mean, my best friend, Levy-chan? Or do you know another Levy-chan? I don't know another Levy-chan besides my best friend, Levy-chan! If you're talking about my best friend, why do you feel weird around her? I thought you two were close! Well, she told me that you guys are close!" Lucy bombarded him with questions.

Gajeel's last nerve snapped. "Whenever I'm with Shrimp, my heart beats faster! My heart never beats faster! It only beats faster when I'm excited to fight! Whenever I'm with Shrimp, I feel like I need to look good, or I need to make her happy. Whenever I'm with Shrimp, whatever she says or does makes me happy or something. Whenever Shrimp isn't with me, I'm always thinking about her! I get these stupid girly thoughts about her like, "I wonder what Shrimp is doing right now." Or, "I wonder if Shrimp is okay." I also get really mad if a guy talks to her, and I don't know why! What the fuck is this?!"

Breathing heavily from his little rant, he paused to see Lucy giggling and laughing like crazy.

Gajeel stared at her incredulously, wondering why she was laughing at something this serious.

After the laughing died down, Lucy wiped the tears in her eyes, a sigh releasing from her lips.

"Oh, Gajeel." She said, laughing quietly. "Don't you get it? You like Levy-chan!"

"What?" Gajeel replied dumbly, heat rising to his cheeks.

"Oh. Oh. OH." He said, finally realizing his feelings for the bookworm.

"Well, uh..." He said, trying to break the awkwardness. "What do I do?"

Lucy exploded with happiness, spilling out a million suggestions on how Gajeel should 'woo' Levy.

"You should show up at her house with a dozen roses and some chocolates... Wait! No! You should give her BOOKS! A ton of books! I'll give you a list of books you should buy for her... Wait no. You need to know where she lives first! Do you know where she lives? Well, I'll give you her address. If only I have a pen and paper... Do you have anything I can write with? How about anything I could write on?" Lucy rambled yet again, searching her surroundings for a pen and paper.

Getting confused and angry from the unclear answer, he grabbed Lucy's attention and said, "You need to be clear, Bunny Girl! What do I do?! 'Woo' her, or confess?"

Putting her finger on her chin, Lucy thought hard to decide what the dragon slayer should do. "I think you should confess! And plus, you're just in time! New Years Eve is tomorrow, so have some time to spare so you can man up and get ready! Then, you can confess at the countdown! IT'LL BE SO ROMANTIC! OH, I HAVE TO TELL MIRA ABOUT THIS."

Before Gajeel could have a chance to reply, she scurried off and went inside the guild to tell Fairy Tail's matchmaker.

"I'm in big trouble." He said, sweat running down his forehead. "If I back out, that demon will come after me!" Gajeel thought about the horrible things that Mira will do to him if he doesn't confess to Levy tomorrow at midnight.

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><p>It was now New Years Eve, and everyone in Magnolia was rushing to get ready for the big countdown that will happen at night.<p>

Gajeel walked through the cobbled roads of Magnolia, his mind filled with thoughts of how he was going to present his romantic feelings for Fairy Tail's bookworm.

Time went by quickly, and before he knew it, he was at the front door of the large and lively guild, hearing the ruckus that waited inside. Gulping, Gajeel entered the lively hall, and walked to his corner to think more about the confession until Mira suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking his path from his safe and lovely corner.

"Oh! Gajeel! Well, hello! Nice to see you!" she greeted, giving him a sweet smile that he knew contained bitterness and threatening curses.

"'Sup." Gajeel greeted carelessly, trying to dry his sweaty palms. Thinking that their small conversation was done, Gajeel was about to step around Mira to head towards his corner yet again, but Mira put her arm out to block his path for the second time.

"Wait for a minute." Mira demanded, becoming serious and demon-like.

"I heard from Lucy that you have a crush on Levy~!" she cooed, totally losing her demon composure.

Groaning, Gajeel stepped the other way and tried to escape Mira's embarrassing coos.

Stopping him for the third (and hopefully last) time, Mira said threateningly, "You better confess to her tonight."

Making a shiver run up Gajeel's spine, he quickly walked to his cosy corner to think about the nerve-wracking confession he has to do if he wants his life to be spared from the wrath of Fairy Tail's demonic matchmaker.

It was now the New Years Countdown Party at Fairy Tail, and Gajeel was sweating bricks by now.

_What am I going to say? Dammit! If Mira wasn't at my tail, I would've been fine!_ Gajeel thought, trying to calm his nerves. He felt two pairs of eyes seeping into his back. Turning around, Gajeel found Lucy and Mira burning holes into him, as if trying to say, "Get ready! It's almost time to confess!"

Minutes passed, and Master Makarov announced that the countdown will start in 5 minutes.

Gajeel rushed to where Levy was. She was standing with Wendy and Romeo and looked like she was having a good time for her last 5 minutes of the year.

"Uh, Shrimp." He called, earning her attention along with Wendy's, Romeo's, Mira's, and Lucy's. He studied the mages' faces, thinking; _don't tell me that demon told those two kids!_ Sighing in disbelief, he shifted his attention to Levy. Uncomfortable with all of the unwanted stares, he cleared his throat and said quietly, "Come here for a sec."

The moment Levy came to him, Gajeel's brain stopped. Cursing under his breath, Gajeel closed his eyes and mentally prepared himself for what he was about to say.

"Uh, Gajeel?" Levy asked, patiently waiting for the dragon slayer to get on with what he needed Levy for.

Looking over Levy's shoulder, Gajeel still saw the nosy mages overhearing their conversation, beckoning him to spit out the confession already.

"Can we go somewhere private?" he said quietly, hoping no one heard his question.

Noticing Levy's naughty thoughts playing in her mind from the look and shade of her face, he looked down at his feet in embarrassment, grabbed Levy's wrist and dragged her to the corner where the darkness shaded them from any disturbances.

"G-Gajeel," Levy called quietly, regaining her composure from her naughty thoughts. She was getting impatient! The countdown was going to begin any second now!

By this time, Gajeel was sweating bullets, trying to form words in his head.

"Shrimp," he started.

Right after, everyone in the guild chorused, "10!"

"Gajeel!" Levy said again, a form creasing in between her eyebrows.

"I..." Gajeel wiped the sweat from his forehead angrily.

"9!"

"8!"

"I... I..." Gajeel stuttered.

Levy turned, facing her back towards him angrily.

"7!"

"6!"

As if time seemed to slow down, all that Gajeel could see was Levy gradually shifting from foot to foot, her figure getting smaller and smaller.

"5!"

"4!"

"3!"

She was halfway across the guild now, making her way to her friends.

Catching a glimpse of her face, a frown was placed on her face. Guilt and disappointment growing in Gajeel's chest, he felt deeply ashamed.

_Wait,_ Gajeel's sub-conscious echoed in his mind. _You have more time._

"2!"

"SHRIMP! I LIKE YOU!" Gajeel shouted just as his guild mates yelled, "1!"

Because of Gajeel's loud confession, the guild's cheers were cut short, and now everyone was looking between Levy and Gajeel, looking closely at what was about to unfold right in front of them.

Keeping his eyes on Levy and _only_ Levy, Gajeel saw that her face gradually turned a rich shade of red, looking like her breath got stuck in her throat. The silence was putrid. For a few minutes, the guild stayed quiet; not even Natsu made a single noise!

"G-Gajeel..." Levy finally said, making everyone turn to focus on her.

Relief flooded through Gajeel's chest. _At least she heard me. I wouldn't dare to say that again,_ he thought to himself. _At least she didn't reject me and run away..._ Gajeel held his breath. _Yet._

"I-I..." Levy spoke again. "I can't believe this is actually happening..." she radiated with happiness.

"I like you too, Gajeel!"

Hearing that last statement, Fairy Tail erupted with cheers filled with "Congratulations!" and "Happy New Year!"

With no hesitation, Levy and Gajeel ran to each other, pushing anyone away because the only thing on their minds was each other.

The moment they were arms reach, Gajeel lifted Levy high up into the air, giving her a sweet kiss to start of the year.

In the background, Erza was found blushing red from the kiss, muttering, "T-that was beautiful." Mira was exploding with happiness along with Lucy who was now with Natsu, laughing, smiling, and trying to get their way to Gajeel and Levy so they can finally tease and congratulate them.

Wendy and Romeo were their same and innocent selves while Happy was shouting praises when Carla finally accepted his offered fish.

Juvia and Gray were with Elfman, Lisanna, Cana, Wakaba, Macao and the Raijinshuu laughing and drinking all together, also surrounding Gajeel and Levy.

Above all, there stood Master Makarov, observing all of his children with a proud and shining look in his eyes.

"Yo! Jii-chan! Come celebrate with us!" Natsu yelled over all the noise, addressing the master. Holding up his fist, he shouted, "Happy New Year, Fairy Tail!" earning laughs and shouts back. Cackling loudly, he put an arm around his partner, Lucy and started to celebrate and brawl with everyone, making the most of the night.

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><p><strong>I don't know... This seemed rushed and really short to me. I'm sorry :c <strong>

**But did you see that slight NaLu? Ooo c; I couldn't help it, LOL XD**

**Anyway, Happy New Year you guys! c: It's finally 2015! Can you believe it? **

**But yeah. Leave a review! I'd love to see your feedback on my first one-shot. Anything I could work on? Do you want me to try another shipping? Suggestions? Questions? Anything! I'm totally open to new stuff c:**

**I hope you guys have a wonderful year 3**

**Until next time!**

**~JenCakeLover **


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